ArcaMax

Dear Eric: We are an empty-nester couple in our 50s. We entertain often, and in one group is a couple who have an adult child, W, who lives with them. This couple frequently asks if W is invited too. We always say yes. The problem is that W tends to put a significant damper on gatherings. They never engage in conversation, literally zero other ...Read more

Dear Anna,

I'm 23, and I've been with my girlfriend for about a year and a half. It’s my first real relationship and I love her, genuinely. She stuck by me through a rough stretch when I was dealing with some family stuff, and I don't take that for granted. Things aren't bad most of the time. We laugh together, we're comfortable, we care ...Read more

Years ago, I had a client who was on Hinge, and someone she was interested in had a really cute picture of himself with a golden retriever. It was his last picture—the sixth of six. So, when she reached out to him, she said, appropriately, “What a cute pup! What’s his/her name?” Simple, cute, easy.

The guy replied (yay!) and, rather ...Read more

Dear Eric: Our youngest child has worked only part time for the past two years, despite being a single mother to two children. At the same time her job situation deteriorated, my husband and I moved away from the city where we all had lived. Our daughter felt abandoned when we left, especially since my husband and I were babysitters, money ...Read more

Dear Eric: My husband died by his own hand more than 20 years ago. We had three kids younger than 15. I was devastated but I had to keep going to maintain some normalcy for them. I went back to school, got a job, sent kids to college, et cetera.

Then came a bombshell a few years ago. My youngest said I have never been there for her, that I only...Read more

PHILADELPHIA -- Linden Curhart describes his home as a “spider web of connections.”

There’s his husband, Teddy Ullrey-Curhart, whom Curhart met when he was an isolated teenager growing up in a conservative town in Virginia. The two always dreamed of getting married, and in June they celebrated their 13-year commitment in a big pink ...Read more

Dear Eric: I have a first cousin that is a very good cook and likes to invite people over for dinner. She has a good job in the medical field. She is not overtly depressed. The problem is the housekeeping and upkeep of the kitchen.

Filthy doesn’t describe the full essence of the situation. There is hoarding, litter boxes that haven’t been ...Read more

Threadbare clothing causes embarrassment

Dear Eric: How much wear is too much wear on personal items? If I am even middle class, I'm clinging to the bottom rung by the tips of my fingers. I know work clothing must be clean and neat, free from stains and holes. But how much wiggle room is there for imperfections?

Some examples: I went to a ...Read more

Dear Eric: My parents got divorced when I was a toddler. Father remarried to a woman for about 15 years until another divorce. My relationship with the stepmother was unhealthy nearly the entire time they were married.

Now we usually exchange texts on Mother’s Day and birthdays. But otherwise, we have no real connection in a meaningful way.

...Read more

Dear Eric: My mother turns 100 soon. I have three siblings who live in the same city 450 miles away. I live close to and see my mom the most.

I queried my siblings about the most convenient date to celebrate our mother’s 100th birthday. I got feedback and I thought all had agreed to celebrate on her actual birthdate. Several weeks later I ...Read more

Dear Eric: I have never had patience for prejudice. I grew up in a household where it simply wasn’t practiced, and it wasn’t until I went to college in the 1980s that I realized some people harbor dislike for others without reason. To this day, I still don’t truly understand it.

I am quick to distance myself from anyone who openly ...Read more